


-/c^V^'^' A'^ ^^' ^^ ^^ 



>»^ ADDRESS 



TO 



!?a2 iissasiiaiaaiL siDsmiair 



OF ]¥E1V-CAST£.E COUJ¥TYi 



At THE 



TDBJSiTTBC Anxri«"0'AX. MBBTXIXTG, 



Assembled at 'Wilmington, Bel., on Sept. 1.8th, 3.845, 

XV, -DELIVERED AT THE REQUEST OF THE SOCIETY, 



BY JOSEPH Z. MTJSE5 A. M, M. D. 

PUBLfSHED BlToRDER OF THffi^OCIETY. 



WILMINGTON, DEI.: 

XYANS & VERNON; FRINTERS, OORNBa OF MAREBT AND THIRD STRBETS. 

1845. 



p ., ERRATA. 

ah3'r;^d"'7anrau;e'"''" '"''""' P^'^^P*^ ''^^ ^^^^ "palliation." 

Pap 5, fouitli line in second paraL'raph the word " entomolorro " should 
read ' ento.nology.' Also, on same pa^e second line in {ourrpari'Vaph the 
word " philosophical," should read » phTlosr phic " paragraph, the 

" fbt'bus - "'^ ^''' ''"" '■ "'^ ^'"' paragraph the word « selibus," should read 

T^^.i^ce^^uKJSnU^^' ''''' ''''''' "'' ^^^ P-^"'^ aftergypsum. 
" llet.i^' ^°"'"''' ''"^ '" ""^ ''"' paragraph the word " cases." should read 

sho^ilfrelVM^'i"';''" ^"""■''^ paragraph. « and have been very successful.", 
snoiiuj read i iiavc been very snccc'^sful " v^-somi. 

•• smcfous^i-'sTlM';! 'T'!'"' P"??"Pl'. 'I's "»"! " silicoan," rtould read 



ADDKESS 



TO 



OF i^ElV-CASTEE COUHTY, 



AT THE 



J^ssembled at Wilmington, Del., on Sept. 18th, 1845i 

DELIVERED AT THE REQUEST OF THE SOCIETY, 

B7 JOSEPH E. MTTSE, A. M. M. D.' 



MVILMINGTON, DEI.: 

SYiLNS & VERNON, FRINTSas, CORNER OF MARKET AND THIRD STREETS. 

1845. 



^ 6 <^^ 



ADDRESS. 

Mr. President and Members of the Agricultural Society of 

New Castle County : 

The position which I have now, the honor to occupy, in com- 
pliance with the invitation of your Society, courteously commu- 
nicated, through your presiding officer, imposes upon me a task, 
so full of interest, so various, and so comprehensive, that I ap- 
proach it with diffidence and distrust, indeed, with a conscious- 
ness of my inability to do justice to the cause which has been 
confided to my charge, the great, the all important cause of Ag- 
riculture ; one, which has been so ably pleaded in this place, on 
former and similar occasions, by advocates so competent to per- 
form the duty, that I would encounter the difficulty, only with 
the knowledge, that I am addressing myself to congenerous 
associates — conspicuous too — for their liberality, as vvell as their 
intelligence and learning, and who, though they may differ in 
sentiment, will recognize the unity and honesty oi purpose and 
motive, as a palliati^^C^or errors, into which I may have fallen 
in practice, or in theory. 

With this reliance, and with this appeal, to the highly intel- 
lectual audience, before which I have the honor to appear, I will 
proceed in the most cursory manner possible, to discuss, in a 
general and perhaps, irregular method, some of the most inter- 
esting principles of the practice and theory of agriculture, that 
occur to me, as appropriate on this occasion. 

The object in view of your Society, the advancement of the 
agricultural interests, is — "consensu omnium" — paramount to 
all other human objects, and that the means you have adopted, 
of associating the moral, intellectual and physicial forces of your 
community, are the most potent and effective for its accomplish- 
ment, it requires no effort to perceive. 

By the mutual interchange, comparison and free communica- 
tion of the results, qualities and properties, that each member 
may have witnessed, an aggregate knowledge of the true charac- 
ter of things, and of modes is obtained in a few years, which, 
under an isolated individual exertion of the best faculties, would 
require a fearful portion of his most active existence. 

The period has long since elapsed, when a discourse upon the 
varied importance and dignity of agriculture, was called for to 
wipe off the stigma of its low and subordinate condition, to sti- 



nulate the farmer to action, to fortify his injured feelings, when 
necessity may have compelled him to adopt a pursuit against 
which his pride revolted. 

The period has arrived, happily for mankind, when the 
"Title" of " Farmer," and his '^ office" confer honor upon the 
incumbent, upon the highest orders and ranks of mankind, in 
Europe, America, and in all the civilized regions of the globe. 

The politician, the jurist, the physician, the theologian, the 
man of science, and the man of wealth — these all, worship at the 
shrine of "Ceres," whose potent charms and benefactions to 
m.in, the tasteful, transported classic chants in fluent song — 
" Cereris sunt omnia munus. " 

In the employment of agriculture, in its various branches — 
about fourteen millions, in sixteen of the white population of the 
United States, are computed to be engaged : — at least two hun- 
dred millions of men expend their daily toil, in this occupation : 
— and a thousand millions, are dependent on it, for their very 
sustenance ; indeed, the generality of mankind, in all the regions 
of civilized society, are in the practice of this profession, which 
we are now called upon to advocate : — it wants no advocacy, 
but the internal evidences it bears in its fri^^ts, of its own merits, 
its honor, its dignity, and its utility. '■'. 

How impressive of these truths, the instance we have here 
presented before us, in this beautiful Hall, in the evidences of 
refined taste on the part of the ladies displayed in the rich and 
fascinating wreathes of flowers and baskets of luscious fruits 
which Flora and Pomona have consigned to their especial charge, 
as fit emblems of their native, inherent, innocence — purity and 
beauty — with th« practical testimony of their economy and indus- 
try — displayed in the various domestic manufactures, exhibited 
on the enviable arena of friendly and patriotic competition, con- 
ferring honor upon their fair authors, and imparting to every 
generous mind a glow of conscious delight and gratification ; this 
portion of the scene alone, offers an ample equivalent for the cost 
and trouble of your demonstration. 

How impressive, too, the example before us — in the assemblage 
of so much talent, energy and enterprise, evinced in the spirit, 
with which this Institution, *' The Agricultural Society of New 
Castle County," has been founded and sustained, and the anima- 
ting zeal, with which, this^ its tenth anniversary, is so effectively 
and ardently characterised, in the exhibition of improved 
breeds of Horses, Cattle, Sheep and Swine, and its varous im- 
plements for rural and other purposes, highly creditable to their 
inventors and manufacturers. 



But how, and why, has this once reviled vocation, attained its 
present ascendency, in the universal assent of civilized man? 
' The sokition of this problem, is to be found in tiie cultivation 
of the science, or rather, of the many sciences, with which ii is 
intimately connected — Chemistry, Physiology, Botany, Miner- 
alogy, Geology, Meteoralogy, Kntqmologo — rthcse are its near 
correlatives^ its cognate branches, without whose assistance in- 
yoked, agriculture would never have risen to its present elevated 
position in the grade of h.uman pursuits. 

But, the whole round of the physical sciences, the whole scope 
•f the material world, organic and inorgaiiic, these all, are its 
friends and connexions ; by propitiating this extensive family, 
the merited influence is accomplished which elevates agriculture 
to its true dignity, supreme above all other pursuits, which man, 
in the fertility of his genius, has ever essayed from the earliest 
epoch of creation. 

The " Science of Material Bodies,'^ or *' Physics," was 
held by the philosophical Aristotle, as first, in the order of 
studies, that of inind, emphatically called by him " Metaphy- 
sics," as secondary to it. 

By that first order cf human inquiry, cherished as a vital prin- 
ciple, by research and developement of the mysterious and sub- 
lime operations of the God of nature, which, half a century ago, 
where for the most part, concealed from the eye of man, they have 
been exposed to the view of the present generation, ihe veil of 
'' Isis" has been removed, and the inquisitive mind is rivetted 
in wonder and amazement upon the brilliant Panorama, ex- 
hibiting the magnificent theatre of physical creation, heretofore 
enveloped in utter impenetrable darkness. 

By this inestimable gift of providence, a new era has arrived, 
a rich banquet, an intellectual feast, is open to all who have a 
taste to partake of the luxurious repast, presented before them. 

By this Divine favor, all nature is exposed to our view — her 
stupendous fabric, is divested of its complexity — its members are 
individualized — its material elements are disclosed — mystery 
vanishes, and man is enabled by the exercise of his superior 
faculties — to master all that surrounds him — to apply the ma- 
chinery, and its parts, in endless variety, for his comfort, con- 
venience and happiness 

Throughout the whole catalogue of human employment, the 
sciences have contributed to the improvement of the arts ; nor, 
has any one of them, received the fostering influence, more con- 
spicuously, than agriculture ; and in the language of the pious 



apostrophe of a former iliscii)le, ii the great school of nature, 
inspired with the fervor of his pursuit, we may honestly exclaim 
"assist us, our Heavenly Father, with the !ig!it of that reason, 
with which thou enlighteneth the world." 

Yet, many are to be found, Vv'ho denounce the lights of science, 
upon agriculture, under the odious anathema, of *' Book-learn^ 
ing ;" this prejudice arisesj fron} a vain conceit of self-stij/icie7i- 
cy— originating in (ignorance profound ', the blind man, who 
has lived in utter darkness is not conscious of the blessings of the 
solar beams, and Franklin, I think, has somewhere said, the 
larger the circumference of light, the greater that of the darknes;!^ 
whicb surrounds us; it is true of those, on whom, the lights of 
science have never glimmered — they are not aware of the fatal 
darkness, in which, their faculties are shrouded. 

Among the kindred sciences, chemistry, and physiology may 
be placed, in the ilrst rank of importance : the one teaching the 
demands of the plant ; the other, its supply ; by the one we 
learn the peculiar organism of the plant, its structure, functional 
means and purposes, its absorption, circulation secretion, and 
excretion ; by the other, we are instructed, in the properties of 
its fluids, and its solids- and we deduce therefrom, a knowledge 
of the elementarjr materials, essential to its growth and suste- 
nance ; one family may need more oxygen — another more hydro- 
gen, or carbon, as acid, or oil may be the chief proximate prin- 
ciple in its product ; — one may require a base of soda, another, 
of potash, lime, or magnesja ; which, chemical analysis will indi- 
cate ; hence, the cultivator is not groping in the dark, he has 
cast his eyes upon the magnificent theatre, and he feels its lumin- 
ous influence ; he knows the iood, which his plants require, he 
supplies the elements — they digest, and elaborate them, for their 
growth, and his subsistence. 

By geology and mineralogy, he will adapt his crop to his soil ; 
or, he will modify it, in its physical properties, and relations, 
to suit his purposes : though extremely useful, and formerly 
considered fundamentally important — yet, under modern science, 
and culture, the physical properties of the soil are considered 
quite subordinate to its chemical constitution. 

The justly celebrated Liebig, who, by unparalleled, herculean 
research, has made a new era, in organic chemistry ; and his 
able successor and expositor, Johnston, following in his mazy, 
and intricate path, have unsettled former opinions, upon this, as 
well as upon i any other subjects of physical science , they have 
-lemonstrated- beyond the power of refutation, the superior im- 



portancG of an accurate knowledge of tlie chemical constilulion 
of the soil, of that of its organic as well as its inorganic ma- 
terials ; and they have revealed mysterious nature in many of 
her most hidden recesses', to the infinite henefit of both animal 
and vegetable health and life, and to their own immortal honor. 

Meteorology — or, that branch of it which treats of the atmos- 
phere and its phenomena as connected with the iveather, has, in 
all ages engaged the attention of mankind, for its close alliance 
with their safety, subsistence and comfort ; but, it is only within 
the short period of general inquiry, that accumulated facts of at- 
mospheric phenomena, have fairly classed it among the sciences. 

Qy the discovery and invention of some necessary instruments, 
the barometer, thermometer, electrometer and hygrometer, this 
science has been recently advancing, though slowly ; it will pro- 
bably, at a future period, stand pre-eminent for its vital services 
to man, in all his varied pursuits ; and most especially, to the 
Farmer, and the Navigator, whose very subsistence and well- 
fare are connected with it ; and it is the moral duty of all, who 
possess the means, to promote it. 

And last, though not least, for its essential conservatory bene- 
fits, is the despised and neglected^ — *' Entomology" — to this, we 
may apply the classic monition, " hoc opus, hoc studium, parvi 
properemus et ampli ;^' and we should adopt it, as we would 
preserve the fruits of our labors. 

Almost annually, are exogenous insects, flocking upon us ; and 
our natives are multiplying in numbers : — from all sections of 
our country, we hear of new insects, the outposts of hostile 
armies, threatening invasion ; some assailing the roots, some 
the leaves, and others the grain of our staple crops. 

A new variety of the ravenous '• Calandra," has, the present 
year, appeared in some of our wheat fields ; it subsists on the 
grain, and was discovered on the head, in active operation, a few 
weeks before harvest ; it diflersfrora the " Calandra Granaria," 
with which the Middle and Southern States, have been familiar, 
by its attacks upon our Grain, when housed. 

This new insect is smaller than the " Granaria" — its form, 
that of a cone, whose apex is a very short rostrum, its color is 
a silver gray, with two black spots, on each elytrum : — the 
"Granaria" is a long, slender ellipse, dusky red color and fur- 
rowed elytra. 

Another new insect has made its appearance in the larva 
State, this season, singularly, suddenly, and exclusively on two 
adjoining fields, nearCambridge,in numbers incalculable, literally 



Coverin<2; the lands, and the wheat, and leaving not a blade on the 
stock ; but not attacking the grain ; trenches were dug to inter- 
cept their passage to the young corn, which, they would, proba- 
bly have exterminated ; and, an earlier visit, might have been 
fatal to the wheat crop ; I obtained some of their transformations ; 
they are a variety of the well known " Cut Worm," the ♦' Pha- 
lena Devastator" — but larger and of a lighter color. 

This subject, gentlemen, *'enicmology," is one of deep inter- 
est, t(I>the farmer, although despised and neglected, perhaps from 
the apparent insignificance of its objects-r-yet, when the magni- 
tude of their operations, is duly appreciated, and the variety, 
frequency and fatality of their attacks upon our .staple, and other 
crops, they become Vi^orthy of our notice, as respects their gen- 
eral and peculiar economy, by which alone, we may entertain a 
reasonable hope of abating, or preventing their destructive rava- 
ges. 

To urge the necessity of the various branches of physical 
science, in connexion with agriculture, before this intelligent 
audience, would be an act of supererogation : — to prescribe the 
best modes and measures, in agricultural practice, as I might 
conceive them, when I behold the surrounding country, as far as 
the eye can reach, bespeaking a superior grade of practice, 
under the best modifications of science would be presumptuous — 
yet, I will briefly notice some mooted points, which relate to 
agriculture in general^ and upon which I may have collected 
unquestionable facts — or, ouch as induction may infallibly settle. 

A question has been started upon very eminent authority, of 
the truth of the doctrine of "Rotation," and of that of the 
"supposed necessity of a change of seed." 

One of my predecessors, in this highly honorable station, which 
I now occupy, the Hon. James M. Garnett, has controverted the 
truth, or force af this doctrine, in a correspondence, a few years 
past, with the " Albany Cultivator"— which, laiely attracted 
my attention ; and moreover, these sentiments are, to my know- 
ledge, entertained by many intelligent Farmers, and therefore, 
become worthy of a serious notice. 

Mr. Garnett adduced as evidence against that doctrine, the 
universal practice in Accomac and Northampton, Virginia; where 
he says " two white crops of grain, corn and oats, constantly 
follow each other every year, without perceptible deterioration, 
as the owners all assert ; and without any return to the land, 
except the dead natural growth of the Pea" — he adds — '* in 
several other other parts of Virginia, he has known similar prac- 



iliie and results — and, indeed the growth of corri «/onc, without 
rest for twentj'- years — and the crops undiminished ;^' "also, of 
garden vegetables, the same seed, in the same squares, for 
eighteen years, unimpaired." 

But for this able and highly distinguished authority, I would 
not hold this question worthy of discussion, before this assem- 
blage of skill and science. 

The facts stated, are no doubt correct, but circumstances un- 
known to him, may have existed, to occasion the 7;«r«c/oar. 

A brief view of this subject, may conclude the question and 
remove the erroneous impression. 

Different genera and species of plants, notoriously contain dif- 
ferent proximate principles — -composed of different elementary 
materials — or, different proportions of them — supplied by the 
soil — hy putrescent maiiures — and by the atmosphere — a truth 
undeniably established by chemical analysis, as well as obvious 
to all who enjoy the two natural senses of taste and smell. 

The inorganic portion of the supplies, is to be found in the 
soil ; and the soil must contain them in quantity and variety, 
suited to the wants of the peculiar species of plant ; or, the crop 
will perish : — when other plants, wanting other elements of 
nutriment, may find an ample supply, for their growth and ma- 
turity. 

Though a different base'may be substituted, as a vicarious and 
imperfect agent for the ti-ne one, which was absent, yet^he plant 
in such case, will not flourish. 

The organic elements are supplied by the putrescent manures 
and the atmosphere — and come within the scope of the same ca- 
tegory, or class of conditions with the inorganic. 

But, inasmuch as the nutriment furnished and that appro- 
priated by the plant, must of necessity, be chemically identical; 
and different species contain different principles, it follows that 
one species continued in the same soil uninterruptedly, would 
consume and exhaust the peculiar elements of its food, sooner 
than a series of unlike species requiring different elements, or 
different proportions of them; and cons quently, that a change, or 
alternation of species is an essential point of economy, in general 
culture — by which a '' quasi repose,'' in the interval, is obtain- 
ed for the recovery of the consumed materials of nutrition before 
the second series may have commenced : — this was a truth 
known in the days of the Mantuan Farmer, " sic quoque mutatis 
requiescunt setibus arva." 

For example — one group— the lequminous, as ** Beans" and 



10 

'^* Peas" require, according to Liebig, but a small portion of the" 
alkalis ; the culmiferous, as '* wheat" and '*oats" require much 
of the alkalis and phosphates ; tobacco consumes much alkali 
and no phosphates. 

From these examples, may hi deduced a set of principles, un- 
questionably sound and in accordance with rotatio7i and mani- 
festing its necessity. 

The climate too must be consulted in the selection of our crops: 
for instance, the " Beet" is more profitable in a cold climate ; 
this root requires much nitrogen ; and as Liebig states — the 
secretion of sugar will oe diminished as the suppiy of this ele- 
me nt may be wanting ; and, as the last j)roduct of animal decom- 
position is, in cold climates — "Ammonia," which is rapidly 
converted into " Nitric Acid," in the ivarmer, the alkali of 
the plant, will engross the acid ; and the supply of nitrogen will 
consequently be deficient, and the " Saccharine" matter there- 
fore not so abundant ; hence a cold is more suitable to the 
Beet, than a warm climate ; and as Chaptal has remarked, nitre 
in such cases, takes the place of sugar ; which he says, is expe- 
rienced in the Southern and warmer parts of France. 
. Holding in view these principles, the cultivator may mark 
his course in safety and confidence — he will adapt his crops to 
the climate and to the Chemical and Geological constitution of 
his soil, and he will distribute the alternations in consistence 
with the/e established laws, which the God of Nature has ordain- 
ed and conferred on him, the faculty of reason to discover and 
to apply for his com'fort and convenience. 

The subject of manures is too copious for an ordinary address 
— yet, the extensive use of lime would seem to claim for it a 
passing remark. 

Like others, I have used it in various modes and quantities — 
and I have been convinced that it may be over-used: — by five 
hundred bushels to the acre twenty years ago, a plat of six acres 
of my field was rendered unprofitable for many years, until I had 
literally buried it with rich earthy and putrescent manures — and 
it is not now as good as these should have made it. 

Dana, in his Manual says *' Lime changes vegetable fibre into 
soluble geine — but applied in excess it forms an insoluble salt ;" 
I have no doubt that in my case, it was in excess. 

It is generally admitted, that all the alkaline, saline and other" 
mineral manures, render the humus, or decomposing vegetable' 
materials soluble, which are in themselves insoluble ; th© 
quantity requisite is inconceivably small either for this purpose,- 



11 

or for consumption by the plant ; yet it is absolutely essential 
for its chemical action, as well as for a portion oi physical nu- 
trimenty and in quantity and kind, it must be supplied— either 
lime, or any other that the special nature of t'he plant may re- 
quire ; but analysis of the ashes prove that the demand has been 
infinitosimally minute. 

Practically I have found one hundred bushels of lime sufficient 
for well manured clay ; and for a light soil — say 85 per cent of 
silica, and moderately manured, one half that quantity, I hold 
to be a sufficient dose : and I am satisfied by frequent observa- 
tion, that the chief rule should be an equivalent of the lime, for 
the humus in the soil — and that much more may be pro tanto, 
pernicious. 

Lord Karnes, in his Gentleman Farmer, says " an overdose of 
lime, renders land so hard as to be unfit for vegetation where the 
land is not well drained — or, where much rain has fallen and 
lingered on the land after the lime has been applied." Hence 
in a large portion of our lands, chiefly on the Atlantic plain — ■ 
embracing nearly the whole of Delaware and the Eastern section 
of Maryland, on both sides of the Chesapeake, this disaster might 
frequently occur. 

The soluble eflects of lime, in due proportion upon the inso- 
luble humus of the soil, will hasten its conversioii and consump- 
tion — and by the aid of irrigation will, without extravagant 
supplies of organic manures soon exhaust the best soils, and ren- 
der them unproductive. 

Hence — irrigation — so highly extolled, I^li^ld to be a measure 
of equivocal result ; one of its chief efiects, is a rapid decompo- 
sition of the vegetable substances in the soil, by means of the 
oxygen, held in solution by the water — and their conversion 
into humus ; much of this humus is insoluble — and, by lime is 
rendered soluble — it follows then, a priori, that irrigation, freely, 
practiced and assisted by the use ^\ lime, would tend rapidly to 
the exhaustion of our soil. 

When the Nile and the Ganges and some other rivers may 
perform this operation, without injury, or, indeed, with much 
benefit, nature has, with her known consistence, and infallible 
wisdom, loaded them with putrescence and with the gaseous 
products, nitrogen, oxygen and carbonic acid, in quantities, 
unusual in other rivers, or running waters ; these compensate 
the rapid consumption : but irrigating waters, in general, do not 
contain them. 

Waters, holding in solutign mineral substances, may be useful 



12 

gtioad hoc ; j^et, in any case, the water too |ong retained, will 
substitute a coarse, aquatic plant, for a more valuable species, and 
this tendency produced, will be difficult to be subdued. 

To prevent, or remove this disposition to the coarse grasses, 
arising from an excessive retention of water, I have found under- 
drains more effectual than the " sub-soil" plough. 

When the soil is super-imposed on a stratum of pan, or bed of 
impervious clay, the water necessarily accumulates upon the 
bed ; and sub-soiling may afford a partial and temporary relief ; 
but the loosened clay soon regains its natural position and density 
and the good effect ceases ; but, well constructed " underdy^ains" 
sunk deep into the bed, are very durable, and afford a free and 
capacious vent; eliciting, on a well known law of «' hydraulics," 
the passage of the water, by the force of its draft, exerted upon 
the capillaries of the incumbent soil : My own comparative and 
practical results for several years, confirm these suggestions. 

Returning from my digression, to Manures, Ashes are indis- 
pensable, where vyheat, tobacco, or the grasses are in frequent 
cultivation, and especially, when these crops have been Jorced 
as, by the use of gypsum ; these plants require a large supply of 
alkalis, and the greater, more frequent and more abundant 
their growth, then X,he greater ihQ consamptiond^'ndi exhaustion 
of these essential substances ; and the greater the necessity of 
ashes, which contain them. 

An instance in point, is occurring near Annapolis, on South 
and West Rivers, where the lands have been rendered very pro- 
ductive, by gypsum«(* Of wheat, tobacco and the grasses, all great 
consumers of the alkalis ; putrescent manures, were considered 
by many unnecessar}', as I have been informed and not applied ; 
the owners are now startled with the fact, that gypsum is losing 
its magic powers ; Gypsum is a mere condiment ; it may season, 
or it may concoct the food, and whet the appetite, but it can 
never supply the materials of/J)utrition, on the contrary, it will 
lavish and consume them. 

Many new nostrums have been recently offered, as manures, 
or substitutes ; steeps, and other concentrated liquors dindi pow^ 
ders, of various and possibly, precarious repute. 

With these I have not been so fortunate, in my few experi- 
ments as some others, who have reported their results ; the un- 
usual drouth iiiay have operated to defeat me. 

With Guano, on corn, I have had the best results, from the 
solution around the plant ; on wheat, I will g ve it a fair and full 
trial the approaching season j it is unquestionably a rich manure ; 



13 

but the small quantity prescribed, will not, I fear, be eompetent 
to verify the promise, and the increase of its product, will not, 
I think, measure with the cost of a sufficient dose : its mixture 
with ashes or lime, as recommended by many of its advocates 
and venders, is wholly unphilosophic and unchemical ; by either 
substance, its chief ingredient of fertility, ammonia, will be libe- 
rated and lost : by mixture with sulphate of iron, which I 
.occasionally practised, this fertilizing substance is preserved, 
and its deadly odor is removed. 

In the form of ^^ steeps, '^ to afford nutriment, or to prevent, 
or destroy insects, the Guano, the Hauterive solution and others 
have failed to perform either purpose ; and I may, with truth, 
echo the sentiment of the classic farmer " semina vidi equidem 
multos medicare serentes, et nitro prius et nigra perfundere 
amurca" and with the like result "vidi lecta diu." 

The famed Poudrette will realize its high repute : my exper- 
iments have been with about 100 bushels of this article, which 
I had prepared with the sulphate of iron, by the method of 
'* Dumas," the great philosophic investigator of the marvellous 
works of Providence ; with two spoons full to the hill of tobacco, 
I had astonishing effects, and am encouraged to manufacture it, 
on a larger scale, the ensuing year. 

By a solution of this metallic salt, the sulphate of iron, the 
offensive odor of all decomposing organic bodies is immediately 
removed, under chemical laws, which may be unknown to many ; 
and being useful to all, in a view io pathology, as well as agri- 
culture, I will offer a few remarks on the subject. 

This substance, the "Sulphate of Iron," is preferable to the 
sulphate of Lime, or the Chloride of Lime, as a " disinfeclor ;^' 
the sulphate of Lime loses its force of the double affinity, or its 
tendency to exchange ^ses with the carbonate of ammonia, 
when it has become partially decomposed ; and, necessarily it 
then ceases to perform the office of disinfection and the chloride 
of lime so extensively used to correct the miasmatic and conta- 
gious air of hospitals, sewers and other filthy places, is extremely 
injurious to health ; its chief agency, mul? be, through its 
"Chlorine" liberated by the carbonic acid, always present in 
such cases — uniting with its lime — and if there be more than an 
equivalent of the chlorine, for the ammoniacal product of the 
putrescent materials — its effects will be pernicious ; Liebig has 
said "Chlorine destroys ammonia, and organic bodies, with 
much facility — but it exerts such an injurious influence upon the 
lungs, that it should never be used in places in which men 
breathe." 



14 

The " Metallic Salt," is liable to no such objection ; the 
gasses, escaping from the putrescent bodies, are the " ammonical" 
with ''sulphur," ''phosphorus" and "hydrogen," and the 
carbonic ; which latter does not contribute to the odor ; by 
the influence of their chemical relations, ihe sulphuric acid of 
the salt unites with the ammoniacal gas and renders it fixed and 
inodorous : — the sulphur, phosphorous and hydrogen unite with 
the iron of the salt, and become, also iiiodoroiis, thus converting 
by a cheap and easy process offensive, deleterious bodies into 
unoffending and valuable materials, for the health, and subsist- 
ence of animal life, 

A striking instance is here presented, in the phenomena de- 
veloped, in this small department of the great laboratory of 
nature — of the divine attributes and plans of the Supreme Crea- 
tor — and of the infinite wisdom and contrivance, with which, the 
minutest parts, are adapted to the perfection of the great fabric 
of the universe. 

We behold, in the instance before us, organic bodies having 
performed their part, in the grave drama of life — decomposing— 
and returning to the common air, from whence they came, the 
elements with which it had furnished them, for a momentary 
existence ; and these elements, again, in turn collected and ela- 
borated through the vegetable machinery — again modified for 
animal uses — and by the animal received, refined and appro- 
priated, to sustain, for a fleeting moment, the very highest grade 
of organic life and being — which is, again resolved into its first 
elements, and changed into new forms, for a new series of phy- 
sical action and re-action — making, by means of its chemical 
energies, an endless cycle of organic creation and dissolution ; 
and thus demonstrating the marvellous, truth, that ?7ifiw is but an 
atmospheric compound — animated thwugh Divine Jigency — 
hy physical and moral light : — " Jthavah ; quam ampla, et 
miranda sunt tua opera." 

With "■ Electricity,^' as an excitant to vegetation, I have 
made some experiments, " atmospheric," and " terrestrial ;" 
with the former, ^Jid have been very successful ; with the latter, 
not so ; it would avail nothing, to recite them. 

I have had another, on hand, by which, I may, possibly, com- 
bine the powers of the thermo — and hydro electric currents ; no 
satisfactory results, are, as yet, obtained. 

For a supply of manures, for many years, my chief reliance 
has been a compost, based on a stratum of swamp muck, covering 
the farm yard, and improved by suggestions, ia Professor Jack- 



15 

son's " Geological Report ;" on the stratum is tiirown. somo 
hydrate of lime — next, a layer of stable nsanare and animal and 
vegetable refuse ; alternately, and forking up the mass and 
sprinkling the surface, when forked, with a solution of sulphate 
of iron. 

The rationale of this compost, is obvious : — By the bed of 
swamp muck, I obtain a large mass of fine insoluble humus — by 
the hydrate of lime, a solution of it is accomplished — the gaseous 
ammonia liberated from the stable, and other vegetable and ani- 
mal materials, by the action of the lime, is, partly fixed by the 
sulphate of iron, and the residue, combines with the humus of the 
muck, and thus the nitrogen, the most essential principle of all 
manures, is well preserved and economizud; and the other prin- 
ciples attained for small costs and trouble. 

The subject of crops is necessarily, one of the first importance ; 
in their selection, fitness of climate, soil, rotation, and market, 
are all essential conditions. 

Plants, as well as animals, by a sanitory impulse, impressed 
by nature seek a suitable locality for their well being ; by this 
impulse, different species seek not only different " habita- 
tions" in reference to climate — but, also, different " stations" 
or peculiar localities. One group will flourish in a humid, 
another, in an acid soil. One, in a river, or marsh, another, on 
the mountain top, one, in a silicean, another, in an argillaceous 
soil, and all in infinite variety ; in the selection o-f which, 
INSTINCT, more infallible than reason, will be their unerring 
guide ; nor can the unll, or, the hand of man control it. 
, Our climate, within a few years, has materially altered — and 
facts are frequently presented, that lead to the belief, that our 
*' wheat" is under the impulsive force of migration, by means 
of this occurrence. 

Our seasons are considerably changed, in point of time ; the 
winter commences later, and it bears the character of " exces- 
sive," with its technical import of variable and frequent alterna- -^ 
lions of temperature : by the sudden changes of frost, and '^■ Ujjh , ^Wijf>* ^ 
our wheat, and other winter crops are, often injured ; by the fre- 
quent expansion and contraction of the soil, the roots are thrown 
out of their bed, and exposed to the fatal action of the weather ; 
the heat of summer finishes the work of destruction — the spring 
season having vanished, for several years, with its genial showers, 
giving vital energy to all organized beings ; for many months 
follow alternate drouth and flood ; a distribution of rain, unequal 
and local, and as fatal to vegetation in the one case as in the other ', 



16 

lind, iWc present year, our " corn" crops, realize this sad picture 
but I commend to others, and myself, resort to my favorite 
maxim — " ne cede malis, sed contra audantior ito." 

I have made many and expensive trials, tci. discover some new 
and better crops, but the fates have not favored my designs : — 

My Cotton crops vi'ere successful, for two seasons, the next 
two proved them to be as precarious as our own ; my Palma 
Christi; flourished well, but could not be harvested without much 
labor atld loss, from its unequal ripening. The "Shipping 
Bean" so highly recommended, did not meet my views ; and my 
experimients with the "Madder" disappointed me ; indeed, /Ae* 
crop has been relinquished in the South and West, where it has 
been largely cultivated. 

My experiments in the growth of " Silk" (not the " tree spe 
culation," which I always viewed as a bubble) were made under 
great advantages, and in much confidence, on authority : — 
Hence I bought every variety of" Reel^" " Wheel" and "Shelf," 
which miglit make it perfect ; fifty thousand worms were safely 
shelved, for the first year, and sportsman like, I doubled the 
hazard, upon the loss, annually, until I had reached nearly a 
million of worms, on the fourth year : — when I pronounced a 
final " anathema abjuratory^' — against the whole concern — ■ 
worms — authorities— and implements. 

One other crop merits attention, one, whose "habitation" — ■ 
^' station"— and "market," all recommend it : — one that will 
give strength and activity to our teams and profusion to. our 
dairies — and will adorn the hospitable board with the choicest 
viands. I mean the "grasses ;" — for the favorable conditions of 
this crop, and its successful adoption in the County of New Castle, 
no stronger evidences can be ofiered,' than those — its enumerated 
good fruits, so copiously presented, and enjoyed, on this Festal 
Anniversary. 

With the growth, and manufacture of Spanish Tobacco — in a 

^^ seven years experiment, I have found it a profitable crop — pro- 

"•••l^Ji^duciTig some years, on a few acres, a hundred thousand Segars, 

manufactured on my Farm, and commanding about fifteen dollars 

per thousand. 

The " Spanish" Leaf, being much smaller than the " Com- 
mon," six hundred pounds is considered a fair average, per 
acre — which, allowing the usual rate of fifteen pounds, for a 
thousand Segars, will make forty thousand Segars — and at the 
price named, they will amount to six hundred dollars ; — from 
which deduct the cost of manufacture — cultivation — boxing, and 



17 

other expenses— -and three hundred dollars will be left, for the 
nett profits of one acre. 

Whatever be the kind of crop, the scale, on which it is at- 
tempted, should be small, in the ratio of our means ; I have on 
a similar occasion, dwelt on this cardinal point of economy, in 
Maryland — where the fault of over-cultivation is prevalent ; — 
the cost and labor of cultivating one acre of poor land, yielding 
five bushels of wheat, is equal, it will be admitted, to that of a 
rich acre, yielding twenty bushels ; — but the rich, yielding four 
times as much a^ the poor, the costs in relation to the crops pro- 
duced, will be as four to one, in favor of the rich acre ; and the 
product, in the one case, being five bushels — say at one dollar 
per bushel, is five dollars — less four dollars for cost — equal one 
AoWzr profit . 

In the rich acre, producing twenty bushels it is twenty dol- 
lars — 'less four for cost — equal sixteen dollars profit, or, about 
sixteen hundred per cent, in favor of the rich acre. 

Finally — -gentlemen — as a co-adjutor in the spacious field of 
agriculture— in that field, where the intricate, and sublime works 
of nature, require to be studied, and investigated — -and where our 
labors, though often frustrated, by her inscrutable laws, are yet 
requited by moral — intellectual— and corporeal blessings — as an 
humble co-adjutor, I repeat, I ofier the most cordial gratula- 
tions — on the many evidences presented here — before the eyes 
of the merest stranger — of the auspicious zeal — enterprise and 
perseverance, with which this tenth anniversary of the " Agri- 
cultural Society of New Castle County," has been so forcibly 
illustrated : — and with my best wishes, for their continued pros- 
perity, individually, and corporately, I conclude my prolonged 
address. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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